Jerry Garcia & Merl Saunders GarciaLive Volume 18: November 2nd, 1974 2-CD Set
Jerry Garcia & Merl Saunders GarciaLive Volume 18: November 2nd, 1974 2-CD Set
SKU:JYCD81
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GarciaLive Volume 18: November 2nd, 1974 Keystone Berkeley presents the complete & previously uncirculated two-set Jerry Garcia & Merl Saunders performance, originally recorded to 1/4 analog reels by Betty Cantor Jackson.
Is there a more iconic venue for Garcia/Saunders than the Keystone Berkeley? The Bay Area haunt was the setting for the performances contained on the legendary Live at the Keystone releases & yielded at least a half-dozen other celebrated official live releases. Be it the quaint, unassuming setting or the proximity to home, magic never seemed to be in short supply and this evening in November was no different. In addition to the ever-present John Kahn on bass, the rhythm section this evening was bolstered by one of the most in demand session drummers of his day, the great Paul Humphrey, whose credits range from Marvin Gaye & Joe Cocker to the Lawrence Welk Show. Future Legion of Mary bandmate Martin Fierro rounds out the ensemble. The performance itself is nothing short of exceptional, particularly the monstrous first set combination of "Valdez in the Country," "The Harder They Come," & "You Can Leave Your Hat On" which destroy any notion of genre as Garcia, Saunders & company somehow fuse seemingly disparate originals by Donny Hathaway, Jimmy Cliff & Randy Newman into a sound all their own. After a brief set-break, the group returns for a super-charged second set highlighted by extended versions of "Freedom Jazz Dance" & Merl's own "Wondering Why" before closing the evening with a fiery "Mystery Train." Always ones to stretch the bounds, you get the sense they would've gone all night if not for the venue's pesky 2 am curfew.
Setlist:
Disc One // Set One:
1.) Neighbor, Neighbor
2.) Valdez In The Country
3.) The Harder They Come
4.) You Can Leave Your Hat On
5.) That's The Touch I Like
Disc Two // Set Two:
1.) Freedom Jazz Dance
2.) Tough Mama
3.) Wondering Why ->
4.) People Make The World Go Round
5.) Mystery Train
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- DDirkRated 3 out of 5 stars7 months ago3 Stars
The positive: The sound quality and recording are excellent. Paul Humphrey is, in my opinion, the best of the JGB/LOM drummers. The song selection is unusual, in a good way. The only tracks on the CD that this band beat to death are The Harder They Come and Mystery Train. And I love Merl's playing as always. The negatives? Randy Newman's You Can Leave Your Hat On is a hilarious song when delivered with Randy Newman's deadpan, sardonic humor. Merl's raspy over-the-top delivery doesn't really work here. And let's face it, he can't sing very well. Martin Fierro's sax is way up in the mix and, frankly, unimaginative and (on The Harder They Come) annoying. Maybe he was having an off night. He sounds better on the flute tracks. Judging from the other reviews, mine is a minority opinion. I've listened to a lot of mid-70's Jerry, still have yet to find anything as good as the original double-LP Live at Keystone.
Was this helpful? - TTTom T.I recommend this productRated 5 out of 5 stars10 months ago5 Stars
Whenever I see an early Jerry and Merl CD for sale, i snap it up, because there's a good chance I was there working at the Keystone Berkeley club. That's the case with this one, which includes Martin Fierro adding some excellent jazz to the jams. And this CD has several of my favorite tunes from this time, Tough Mama and That's a Touch I Like. And one I don't remember, Neighbor Neighbor. Thanks for making this available!
Was this helpful? - TTimI recommend this productRated 5 out of 5 stars1 year ago5 Stars
I really enjoy listening to all of Jerry Garcia's projects away from the Dead. But some of my favorite performances were those he did at the Keystone in Berkeley. I was able to attend quite a few of those performances in the 1970s and have many fond memories. This was a great recording of an amazing period in Garcia's musical journey.
Was this helpful? - DDinoI recommend this productRated 5 out of 5 stars3 years ago5 Stars
Love it, I saw this band (w/ Paul on drums) in Boston at Paul Mall club for 3 or 4 nights they player there. Just like I remember it!
Was this helpful? - BRBrett R.I recommend this productRated 5 out of 5 stars3 years ago5 Stars
GarciaLive Volume 18 is basically a great jazz-rock fusion show from less than 2 weeks after the Grateful Dead's "Last Show Ever". This is a period where Jerry's musical future was completely up in the air and he could go in any direction that he wanted to, and this was him doing what he wanted. He had been working with Merl Saunders and John Kahn for several years playing in local venues and they were really tight. The addition of Paul Humphrey on the drums in this show just adds to the musical excellence. Phil Lesh played the bass like a lead instrument in the Grateful Dead, and Paul Humphrey played drums during this show in a similar way, with an artistic intent that makes him as big of a part of the creativity of that night as Jerry, Merl, and Martin Fierro, who played the wind instruments. Nothing mattered to the people on stage that night but the quality of the music and it shows. I really enjoyed this one!
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